Preview DirectWrite / Cleartype GDI Rendering on Mac OS X without Windows?

Alexis Samson
Alexis Samson Posts: 11
For testing hinting without leaving Mac, is this possile? Or is using parallels to run Windows the best way (other than using slow web browser testing services)?

Comments

  • There are a few online services, such as Browserstack, for generating browser screenshots which can create pretty good samples of the various rendering schemes. In fact, I know foundries who use these services for producing the webfont previews on their retail site.
  • FontLab VI will have this capability, but until then, those are your two options.
  • kupfers
    kupfers Posts: 259
    edited October 2014
    If you are on a Retina laptop I would recommend using an external standard-res monitor either way. Virtual machine and cross-platform test sites both worked well for me, but sometimes what I saw on my high-res screen didn’t seem 100% reliable to me. (I used crossbrowsertesting.)
  • Agreed! I have gotten some interesting and I believe inconsistent results on retina screens (both laptop and external) in my Windows VM.
  • “Retina” screens contradict the principles that are used to simulate resolution on a normal res LCD screen. They actually show the colors instead of partially lighting up the pixel.
  • Yes, looking at LCD-optimized bitmaps from a regular-res environment on a double-res screen can cause problems.
  • probably worth the investment to pick up a cheap-o used/refurbished PC laptop ($100?), and avoid the headaches.